The History of No. 2 Forward Observation Unit, Royal Artillery (Airborne)
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The History of No. 2 Forward Observation Unit, Royal Artillery (Airborne) Part 1 By Lt.-Col. H.J.B. (Harry) Rice, RA (Retired) I had the privilege and good fortune, as a young Battery Commander of 24 in a Field Regiment, Royal Artillery, to be appointed in July 1944 to command a totally new unit called 2nd Forward Observer Unit, R.A. (Airborne) which, as I soon discovered, was to be part of the British 6th Airborne Division, then fighting in Normandy. Few soldiers are fortunate enough to be involved in the formation of a totally new unit, fewer still in a unit whose make-up was unique in that it was to be one-third British, Royal Artillery and two-thirds Canadian, Royal Canadian Artillery, so I was particularly lucky in that appointment. 2 FOU, (soon to be known in the Division as either “the FOO” or “two FOO”) had a comparatively short life as Army units go, but it quickly made its mark and those who were in it can take pride in its achievements. (L-R): Capt. S.A. Mooney M.C., G.R. Bartlett, H.V. Mellenger and W.A. Mackenzie, Training in Wismar, Germany 20 May 1945. The first question that we all asked on joining was “What is a FOU?”. No one in the Divisional Rear Party in Bulford seemed to know and it took a trip to Normandy, where the Division was busy pushing the Germans back to the River Seine, to find out. The Commander Royal Artillery, Brigadier “Chubby” Faithful gave me his orders and priorities: we were to direct the fire of any ground force artillery in range of the Division and to take a leading role in countering the fire of the German mortars which had been so deadly in Normandy. He required from us long range wireless communications, perfect radio procedures, good artillery fire control by the forward observation parties and everyone to be highly proficient in counter-mortar duties. The motto of 6th Airborne Division was “Go To It” and 2 FOU did just that. Gunner J.R. Purser 2 FOU. The parachute cord strands hanging from his Denison smock zipper represent every jump he made up until 4 October 1944. John recorded in a letter dated 28 September 1994 that although many members of 2 FOU were qualified to wear the Glider Trained Infantry Badge, he could not recall anyone going out of their way to actually wear it. The man at right is also a British member of 2 FOU. What does one remember of those far off days? - the 3 months of intensive training in the autumn of 1944 on Salisbury Plain, with parachute training for those who had not already got their parachute wings, the arrival of the forward observation parties from Normandy (only five parties remaining of the twelve who had left England on D Day), learning lessons from them and from 1 FOU who had been in the Battle of Arnhem, interminable radio exercises, counter-mortar exercises parachuting and gliding with the infantry battalions of the Division and working with our new liaison sections who arrived from the Canadian Army in November; - our Christmas leave in December 1944 that wasn’t. With less than 24 hours’ notice and on the very day that we were meant to go on leave the whole of the Division was heading eastwards to Tilbury for embarkation for France. We landed at Ostend on Christmas Day and set off as fast as we could for Dinant on the River Meuse and the Battle of the Bulge; - the bitter cold and snow of the Ardennes in December and January and, in particular, the vicious little Battle for Bure, where 13th Parachute Battalion had heavy casualties and 2 FOU’s counter-mortar organization succeeded, in its first engagement, in successfully directing the fire of our own artillery and silenced the heavy German mortar fire which was being aimed at the Battalion in the village, - the strange interlude for most of February 1945, when the Division held the line of the River Maas in Holland between Roermond and Venlo while the great battles raged in the Reichswald not very far away. 2 FOU had observation posts established in the villages along the river. It was during this period that a deep penetration patrol was sent across the flooded river under the command of Captain Ken Boss, during which it had to fight its way out of a tricky situation, an action for which Captain Boss was awarded the Military Cross; - the return to Winterbourne Gunner at the end of February 1945 leaving part of the Unit behind in Holland, 7 days leave and then a hectic 3 weeks in March during which the Unit checked its equipment, took part in several exercises, received and despatched to Holland in 48 hours two sound ranging sections, left for the marshalling camps and airfields in East Anglia and duly played it part in the airborne assault across the River Rhine on 24 March; - the battle itself, and the quiet satisfaction in knowing that 2 FOU had carried out in every respect all that it had been required to do. The weeks and months of training had paid off; - the advance across Germany, with plenty of fighting and 2 FOU observation parties being very active in shooting our own artillery and in counter-mortar work. A particularly unpleasant battle took place in mid-April when 6th Air Landing Brigade forced a crossing of the River Weser against determined opposition. Captain Sid Mooney was awarded the Military Cross for the part his observation party played in this operation; - the preparation for an airborne assault across the River Elbe, which never took place; and the final dash from the Elbe to the Baltic with the Division under orders to reach Wismar before the Russians got there, thereby preventing them from getting into Denmark; Capt. I.C. Stewart (left) and Capt. Sid Mooney MC (right) at Greven Germany 5 April 1945. Note that they wear enemy tan & water pattern reversible to white winter camouflage parkas. LAC, CHR 49494 - who can forget the almost farcical situation of the airborne soldiers roaring up one side of the road intent on reaching Wismar and the German Army hurrying down the other side of the same road, intent on getting away from the Russians, with both Armies in far too much of a hurry to waste time shooting at each other; and the final irony of all when we drove through one small town whose square was packed with German soldiers and transport, they lined the streets and cheered us on; in their eyes we had saved them from certain retribution. (L-R): L/Bdr. Harry Venne, Capt. Sid Lloyd, Gnr. Ted Clay and Gnr. Chuck Bradley, Wismar, Germany May 1945. - meeting, and halting, the Russians at Wismar, the surrender of the German Forces to Field Marshall Montgomery on 5 May, and V E Day on 8 May; and the curiously flat, rather aimless feeling when it was all over and we had nothing else to do. - the return to Winterbourne Gunner in mid-May, leave, the departure in June of all RCA personnel en route to Canada (the liaison sections had left for Canada in late April), the arrival of reinforcements from 1st Airborne Division and the re-forming of the Unit. Six weeks later, in mid July, 2 FOU was on the move again for the war in the Far East, to India and fresh operations in Singapore and Indonesia, and to Palestine. But that, as they say, is another story. Wismar 20 May 1945, Unknown L/Bdr., Capt. Alan Finlayson, Bdr. Bob Mullin, L/Bdr. Granger Martin on radio. Part 2 By Capt. R.C. (Bob) Hamilton, Commander, No. 5 Section By June 1944, airborne divisions needed the support of a great deal of artillery as they became involved in major operations. Then experience taught that a well-organized unit of forward observers with top observer, gunnery and wireless communications skills was needed to help ensure the success of an airborne operation. In this setting, a fine example of British-Canadian co-operation took place when No. 2 Forward Observation Unit, Royal Artillery (Airborne) was formed on August 7, 1944. This Unit was to work with the brigades and their battalions in the 6th British Airborne Division. There was a British H.Q., two Canadian sections and one British section. Our unit had a working WE [War Establishment] of 101, half British and half Canadian. Experience from earlier operations proved that immediate replacement of Forward Observer parties and much better co-operation was needed. For example, in Normandy, some FOOs [Forward Observation Officers] never arrived and usually it took a long time to get replacements. The soldiers for No. 2 FOURA (Airborne) came mainly from Canadian and British regiments. Many had taken parachute training as I had – not knowing where we would end up but anything to get the War over. On “D” Day, June 6, 1944, my 23rd Field Regiment, R.C.A., S.P. [Self- Propelled] in the 4th Canadian Armoured Division, was still training but ready to move into Normandy. I was A-Troop Commander. Four days later, the 31st Battery Office runner brought me a note...”Hamilton, come and get your gear. You are leaving the Regiment”. After waiting in Depot, we were rushed to the Salisbury area where we formed the Unit and continued parachute and artillery training. Our main responsibility was to support 6 Division’s brigades and battalions by Forward Observation for assigned artillery regiments – British, American and Canadian.